Education Industry Updates Q3 2015

Trends

Education is another industry in which most GCC nations are seeking to improve their infrastructure as the baby boomers are set to retire from the workforce and demand for skilled workers needed to replace them.

With one of the youngest populations in the world, demand for skilled and western curriculum teachers and tutors is high. They must cater for the large numbers of students enrolling in schools.

In Saudi Arabia, the new budget that has just been released has seen an increased in investment from the government (up 3 per cent from the previous year) to fund around 164 projects for new and existing education projects.

Three new universities are expected to open and be built within the next year, requiring university professors and lecturers while an increased capacity at already established universities and college campus is expected also.

In the UAE, rising demand for private schools, E-Learning and ICT are the main trends impacting hiring as we head into the second half of the year.

A rising trend in the education sector has been the increasing prominence of the e-learning market, recording the highest CAGR of 27.4% since 2008. This has been particularly evident in tertiary education programmes and institutions. Largely due to the technological advancements and ease of accessibility, it will predictably continue to thrive as institutions move content to the digital side.

Overall, there has been a rapid expansion across all education levels from primary, secondary and tertiary education.

In saying this, this does not mean Dubai or any of the other nations have access to some of the best schools globally. In fact, Dubai’s International schools rank within the top 10 globally, rather some other public schools skew the rankings according to, Clive Pierrepont, director of communications for education group Taaleem.

For Abu Dhabi to meet the demand and education requirements, 60,000 private school places will need to be added in the next five years, according to the director general of the Abu Dhabi Education Council (Adec).

Job Updates

Overall there were 102 vacancies in education across the entire GCC region; 40 of them advertised in the UAE, 35 in Saudi Arabia, 10 in Qatar and 3 in Kuwait.

With teachers in demand across all levels and subjects, those private sector roles are in most demand, with 48 positions advertised in the private sector across various levels. The level most in demand was primary school teachers, with western education background highly sought after.

You can expect this number to rise dramatically in the coming months as numerous projects near completion and schools seek to fill the void that currently exists.

If you need help penetrating the Education industry, upload your CV to Teleport My Job and login for a free CV appraisal.